It was graduation night at the Hammerstein Ballroom as two of it's shining stars, Dmitriy Salita and Curtis Stevens, sang their prospect swan songs in front of an adoring hometown crowd. Neither man would make the Dean's List however, both showing signs that graduate school will necessitate a lot more hitting the books to improve their grades.
A line wrapped around West 34th Street, circumventing into Eighth Avenue, appurtenant more frequently to rock concerts than boxing events. This could mean only one thing -- Dmitriy Salita is in town. What was supposed to be a platform for a mega bout later in the year degenerated into a inquisition, as Salita failed to live up to the highest expectations set upon him at this advanced stage of his career.
Entering the ring to the live rap stylings of Jewish emcee Remedy, Salita's typically lavish introductions would not be eschewed this time around. Coming out in a conventional boxing stance, Salita worked his jab early and effectively, but ate too many jabs for this ringside observer's taste.
There was a metronomic quality to Salita's continued flaws early on. Every time Salita jabbed and dropped his left, an overhand right from Grover Wiley would greet his chin. When Salita split his guard when throwing combinations, counters up the middle would find their way to Dmitriy's mandible. These faults would catch up to him on several occasions in the early rounds, particularly in the second when Salita was stunned against the ropes by a right hand.
Salita went back on the offensive in the middle rounds, hurting Wiley with a hook-right hand combination that sent Wiley's mouthpiece soaring. A brief reprieve was offered, and Salita would later point to that moment as what saved Wiley from a knockout. Salita continued to work the body religiously and doubled the hook up well, but the shakiness of his outing inspired more questions than praise.
If boxing were a non-competitive sport where the merits of one's performances were not juxtaposed in contrast with that of his peer's, it could then be said that Salita was impressive. But boxing is not like that, and Salita's inability to knockout a journeyman who had suffered that indignation five times in his career is frankly inexcusable.
Conversely, this was Salita's first fight in six months, his longest layoff as a professional, and he was reported to be having trouble making weight. He does however need to step up his game if he wishes to vie with the likes of Ricky Hatton and Junior Witter.
Salita moves to 27-0-1 (15 KO), while Grover Wiley drops to 30-9-1 (14 KO).
Figueroa Scorches Ramirez
Frankie Figueroa has not been in a televised fight since 2004, when he dropped a decision to Francisco Rincon. He sure fought like someone who wants to be televised again in the future. In a bout that matched two men of disproportionate skill, Figueroa moved one step closer to legitimate contention in the junior welterweight picture.
After a slow paced feeling out round, Figueroa, exploded with thudding combinations to the head and body in the second round. A right hook to the chin sent Ramirez sprawling to the canvas, setting precedent in what would be a recurring theme. Ramirez beat the count, but was saved from a possible stoppage by the bell.
As the third round began, Ramirez's legs looked like he had just completed a 30 mile hike up a mountain. Figueroa picked up right where he left off at the beginning of the third, dropping Ramirez once more seconds into the round. Ramirez was all done in by this point, as another left-right flurry launched a sprawling Ramirez to the floor one more time as the referee tried in vain to prevent any further damage. The official time was :42 of the third round.
Gone were the wide, looping shots that had typically characterized his earlier performances. It was all straight shooting at The Ballroom, displaying more pinpoint accuracy than has previously been exhibited. After Gato found his range, Ramirez had as much chance as a silk shirt in a dryer.
Figueroa raises his record to 15-2 (11 KO), while Ramirez falls to 24-15 (17 KO). This was Figueroa's seventh straight win, and Ramirez's sixth consecutive loss.
Stevens still in Finishing School
Curtis "Showtime" Stevens has shown considerable promise in his career. He has also shown considerable room for improvement, particularly last night against Darnell Boone. The secret is out on Stevens; Movement and a sharp jab are the keys to a successful conquest of Stevens. Professional spoiler Darnell Boone entered with all of the guile, but none of the pop to get the job done. He did offer the kind of work that Stevens will need as he progresses through his professional sojourn.
In the early rounds, Stevens, of Brownsville, Brooklyn, worked slowly as he tried to solve the Rubik Cube matchmakers had put in front of him. Boone used lateral movement and fast combinations to confuse the knockout artist, offering angles that would make it very difficult for Stevens, whose flat-footed style is excellent for increasing power, but a serious detriment when forced to move.
At various points in the middle rounds, Stevens appeared utterly confused by the complex mystery he had to navigate. He finally caught up to him in the seventh, when a lightning bolt of a hook jolted Boone. The referee motioned to the ropes, signaling a knockdown as only the ropes had kept Boone erect.
After that incident, it was all Stevens. Boone went into survival mode with Stevens pursuing his prey, now in full retreat.
The scores were inordinately lop-sided, with all three judges scoring it a perfect shutout for Stevens at 100-89. Nonetheless, Stevens continues on with his interests at 17-1 (12 KO), while Boone searches for another payday at 14-9-2 (5 KO).
Codrington Continues Comeback
Working to allay the stigma of his first round knockout loss to Allan Green in 2005, Jaidon Codrington displayed more of the natural athleticism that made him a prized prospect in recent years with a workman-like decision over Marlon Hayes.
Jaidon got the festivities started with a sharp right hand that brought the only knockdown of the fight in the opening stanza. Hayes buckled from the shot, with his knee grazing the canvas. Hayes, who had come in overweight, looked stunned and shell-shocked by his adversaries quicker, more powerful hands.
Jaidon was unable to force his advantage in the subsequent rounds as Hayes spent the next few stanzas in retreat mode. Other than an occasional right hand lead to the body, Hayes offered sparse other artillery. To Codrington's discredit, he failed to capitalize with the left hook counter, though it was of no fault to a lack of effort.
Codrington finally found his range in the middle rounds, as uppercuts and left hooks began landing for the first time on the elusive veteran. In the seventh, some frustration began to show on Codrington as he posed and feinted more than open up the flood gates on his wilting foe. Hayes was deducted a point for holding in the eighth, a perfunctory gesture to say the least. Hayes made his final stand in the eighth, but by this time his left eye had been transmogrified into a garish mess. "The Don" put on an impressive closing rally to secure any intangibles, with Hayes' fatigue leaving him defenseless to his more talented opponent's combinations.
"I was effective, but it wasn't my best looking fight," Codrington, now 15-1 (11 KO) conceded. "Sometimes you gotta win ugly, though. I got to get back to my jab more and cutting off the ring more." Hayes, who is trained by New Jersey boxing legend Jimmy "The Cat" Dupree, goes to 23-6 (11 KO).
Jaidon, who was clearly rushed too early in his only major step up, may be ready for an increase in competition quality. The fighter he named was Omar Sheika, a feasible and totally reasonable level for this stage in his progression.
In Other Action
Making his pro debut, Harvey Murray was afforded no patsy as he was pushed to his limits by journeyman Francisco Palacios. Absorbing many flush shots from his less athletic, but more experienced foe, Murray suffered a great deal of punishment over four rounds, earning a draw. Murray debuts at 0-0-1, while Palacios goes to 0-1-3.
Weighing in at 210, Sean McClain made his pro debut a smashing success as he blasted out the 260 pounder Clifton Adams with one right hand at 2:07 of the first. A brief synopsis: The guy who was in shape beat the fat guy. End of story. McClain goes to 1-0 (1 KO), while Adams plummets to 0-3.
Ronson Frank outhustled Don Mouton to a unanimous decision victory. Frank is still unbeaten at 8-0 (4 KO), while Mouton loses his first bout at 2-1 (2 KO).
The most improved aspect of the show were the ring card girls, which in recent Broadway Boxing events have been less than stellar. Dick Cox, who provides the mid-round catwalkers, brought his A-Game to this card.
